My Four Best Friends
by SenseandCommon
Summary: Hello, my name is Avery Ingle. I am 14 and I live in Perdido Beach, California. I have been living without parents since I was 12. Today, however, all of the adults disappeared. - "Gone" told by a few of the Perdido's many ignored citizens.
1. Together, Alone

**Author's Note: I do not own Gone. I do take excerpts from the actual book, like Caine's speaking roles in "Captain Caine," "Eavesdropping, Again," etc because without them, I'd be straying too far from the book. That and I just don't want to write something that that character wouldn't actually say/didn't actually say. I really do suggest that you read the Gone series, it has a really good plotline and typical whiney teenagers (ha ha). Hunger is my favorite. I can't wait until I get to write for that one. **

**Author's Note Volume Two: I've changed my character's name and made other improvements on my work. Be sure to tell me what you think and review! **

**Book One: Day One**

Hello, my name is Avery Ingle. I am 14 and I live in Perdido Beach, California. I have been living without parents since I was 12. Today, however, _all_ of the adults disappeared.

I know what you're thinking, where have your parents been? Here's my answer: I wish I knew. They're probably dead. They went on a sailing trip two years ago and never returned. Throughout the years, I've learned to fend for myself. All I had to do was list my grandparent's empty house as my address on school applications and never, ever, make friends.

I also know the typical question that follows. How have you been making money for food and clothes? Well, for the answer to that, let's just say Coates is easy to break in to. They blame the missing stuff on their "problem kids" and I get away scot free. All I really own is an empty closet in the in-town apartment building and a bicycle.

Now that that's cleared up, I bet you're wondering about the rest of the adults. Yeah, I am, too. All I know is everybody got out of the school real fast. Idiots, if you ask me. I think we should have stayed in one place instead of wandering about. I know what it's like to wander here. It can never be safe.

Part of me wanted to run to the office. Wanted to tell everybody that they needed to group together, that whatever was happening wasn't natural. But what would that do for me? Put me in the public eye? Send me straight into foster care? A short little girl with mousy brown hair? I would blend in like just another piece of an unsolved jigsaw puzzle. I would never get out.

I walked with everyone else. As I left I passed Astrid the Genius, School Bus Sam, and Sam's weird friend, Quinn. They all seemed pretty freaked out. They were headed towards the office. Maybe they had the same idea I had. Hopefully they did.

None of them noticed me. Astrid held her worried little head high. She was the type of smart kid adults would praise above all others. Basically, she could study school topics, but when it came to applications, she fell short. Sam looked exactly the opposite. For some reason he thought he blended in. Somebody like that could never blend in.

As I walked out of the school, I started to notice exactly what kind of havoc was about to take place. A group of kindergarteners were all wandering in opposite directions. Each time they seemed to know where they were going, they turned around and headed the other way. Two fourth-graders were fighting over some trading card, each one shouting that they'd tattle on the other. Some older boys had treed a squirrel with meter sticks. However, what shouted out 'failure' the most was the crying.

Nobody in their right mind would cry in such a public place like that. They should be lucky that they hadn't popped into thin air like the teachers. Hell, even I was happy about _that _fact.

Then I saw Sam waltz on out of the school and head into town. I almost wanted to scream an array of curse words in his direction. How could he be so stupid? We need to stick together! People look up to him, if he goes, they will. The only way you'd be able to control a group that big fanned out that far would be with some sort of weapon. Some sort of weapon that doesn't exist.

I waited for everyone to leave, excluding the lost kindergarteners. It almost made me cry the amount of them that were left here. Did anyone care that the little girl that lives down the road was sitting down on the lawn outside the school eating rocks? The sheer amount was too much for one person. I left for town. Maybe somebody else had done the same.

I needed to get my stuff out of the apartments.

My apartment building was right next to the day care. Even smaller children sat unguarded in that godforsaken place. Come to think of it, I wonder how many stay-at-home parents had disappeared to leave their children on the floor in the kitchen. Alone in their bedroom. I almost released a sob when I pictured a "bath-time" mid disappearance.

I decided at that moment that had to save at least one kid, maybe two.

The closet had been the sleeping quarters of a live-in nurse who had long quit (maybe because her room was so small). Somebody had been using it to hide stuff they couldn't fit in their apartment. My best guess is that it was the old man who was a level five hoarder/dementia patient, considering nobody ever came to get their stuff. Whoever they were, they got to cram more stuff into their actual space and I got to live in the middle of Ariel's hidden cave. Too bad I didn't get the statue of the heroic prince. I only got a TV-box full of mugs from Philadelphia.

I grabbed my bag and packed all I had, two cans of tuna, four of corn, two of green beans, four shirts, two pairs of torn jeans, a small worn blanket, and a half-empty bag of chips. I pushed my bicycle out the door, knocking over a two foot lava lamp as I made my way out the door.

That is, until I heard the crying.

It was a little girl, alone in her apartment. The door was open, and I figured nobody was going to be upset if I helped a little girl not die. She was sitting in the corner of her main room hugging her knees. What caught my attention, though, was the sixty-four pack of crayons on fire in the middle of the room.

Using a nearby blanket I quickly suffocated the flames. The little girl wailed as I did.

"Stranger danger!" The little girl screamed, pointing at me.

"Don't worry," I stuttered, not knowing what to say, half worried somebody would hear her, "I'm just the fire department."

"No! You're that girl mommy tells me is no good!" The blow almost hurt me. On the contrary, when I actually thought about it, I'd probably tell my kids to stay away from a girl who was living illegally in my home, too.

"Well, I was sent here because the fire department was on a snack break." I made up the most kid friendly excuse I could that didn't use the term 'bunnies' in it. The girl seemed to buy it.

"Oh, well I tried to call them, but nobody was home. I guess that makes sense." She moved over to the melted wax and sat down with a bright red crayon and began to draw on the wooden floor.

"May I ask what your name is?" I still wanted to find somebody to save. I think this little girl deserved it.

"Oh, my name is Ashton."

"Would you like to come with me, Ashton?" I didn't know how else to ask, so I was straightforward about it.

"No, my brother will be home soon. He was at school. Next year _I _get to go to school."

For some reason I felt relief. Somebody who actually had somebody else to look after them. I turned off the stove and made sure there weren't any matches in her reach. I also told her not to let anybody else she didn't know in. I didn't want some kid to rob her just because there were no adults.

It was an hour after the fire I found out her brother was sixteen.

It tore me up. For once, I walked up to somebody. For once, I made the first step in making my world a better place.

"What happened," I screamed at some boy, Joel, who was standing next to Edilio.

"Oh, there was a fire." He mumbled, obviously thrown off by being yelled at by me, such a quiet, innocent girl from school.

"No duh! I heard a little girl died? Yeah, I fire-proofed her apartment a few minutes ago. No way could anything normal have started that fire."

"Get used to abnormalities, my friend. We're living in Hell."


	2. Parker

**Book One: Day One, Part Two**

Nobody had covered up the body. It took me a while to do it, but I gently laid my blanket down on top of the burnt little girl. Nobody else had even seemed to notice she was there. Nobody else cared. All they cared about was the Twix they had taken illegally from the little corner store.

Did they even realize what was happening?

It seemed like everyone was going to the plaza, so I did, too. Maybe, just maybe there would be some sort of announcement. Somebody was here to save us. Somebody wanted to create order before we turned into _Lord of the Flies_.

I definitely didn't want there to be a Simon.

When I arrived, all I got were whines and tears. People were looking for missing family members they'd probably never see again. People were looking for a leader. People were looking at Sam.

For a few minutes I watched Sam, as most of the crowd was. His expression was normal, he seemed completely terrified at the large amount of people staring up at him. A little boy ran up to him, asking for his help, crying. Within seconds, the little boy had run out into the road towards the burnt building. No way I'd let another child go.

I ran to the boy. He was dressed in jeans that were too big for him and a dark blue shirt with Spiderman flying across the front. His orange hair looked as if it were fire around his eyes. In his arms was a worn gray bear, and he was using it to wipe his tears.

"Hey, little boy. What's your name?" I didn't know what else to say, yet again. He looked so afraid, so sad. All I knew was that he needed somebody to care.

"Parker. Parker like Spiderman's last name." He pointed weakly at his shirt through constant tears.

"You like Spiderman?" I was trying to be as relatable as possible. I know that's how you make friends when you're older, so maybe it could work on a little kid, too.

"Yes," he stuttered, his tears were slowing, "I like Batman, too, but he can be scary sometimes."

"I agree, he can be totally freaky," I couldn't help but giggle a little. The boy was so cute.

"Yeah," Parker's eyes began to trail towards the day care. The lights were off inside.

"Did that boy over there tell you to go to the day care?" I pointed to Sam, who was turning to walk out of the plaza. Not again.

"Yes, but it was dark in there. I don't like the dark." He held his head up high, as if I was going to judge him for being afraid of the dark.

"That's ok. Where do you live? You should get home." I patted him on the back. He burst into tears, shaking uncontrollably.

That's when something strange happened.

The little boy's hair changed dirty blonde. His eyes flared deep green. He grew about two feet, his face aged with each inch. Where the five-year old red-haired boy once stood, a twelve-year-old blond child had taken his place.

"Oh, I'm back."


	3. Cameron

**Book One: Day One, Part Three**

I stood, rigid. What I had just witnessed wasn't possible. It wasn't sane.

"I am so sorry you had to see that." Parker took of the tiny shoes and threw them on the ground.

I had thought I hadn't known what to say before, now I was literally speechless. All I could do was stutter.

"W-w-what?" I pointed at him lifelessly.

"Oh, I like to call him Parker because of his intense fondness for Spiderman. My birth name is Cameron." He held out a boney hand. For some reason I shook it.

"H-how?"

"I actually don't know. It started a month ago, and my parents went crazy. They sent me to Coates because they thought I was just driving them mad. I escaped two days ago. It seems to happen whenever I feel strong emotions. Sadness and happiness make me older. Fear and anger make me younger. The emotion also seems to control _who_ I become." Parker, Cameron, or whoever he was acting far too calm. Now that I thought about it, though, I guess he had to.

"How many of them are there?" I added a laugh to add a casual feel to the conversation. It didn't work.

"Just four," he laughed casually, "I guess that sounds odd. Parker normally comes with fear. Damon comes with anger. Nathaniel comes with happiness. And I return to myself with sadness."

"How do you know Cameron is you? I mean, how do you know you didn't change from, say, Parker when you were young?" This was the first question I that actually caused his expression to change. He must have spent hours learning to control his emotions.

"Well, I started changing regularly as Cameron, so that makes me think I'm him. But then again, I may never truly know."

We talked for the next few hours before I even began to notice his age. Sure, a five year old would never tell an adult that their one guardian was really an orphan, but a twelve-year-old trying to escape from a school for the horrible would.

"Where do you live?" his comment pushed aside my negative thoughts and brought upon many new ones.

He was homeless, too.

"Uh, I, um, lived in the apartment building that burnt down. Where have you been living?" I hoped he would buy it. I mean it wasn't _that _much of a lie.

"Oh, this old couple has been on vacation in at their summer home in Seattle, I've been staying there. They live over on Chesney and Pacific. You can come. Besides, Damon can get a little crazy. He'll need somebody to look after him."

The look on his face was strange. I had never seen anything like it. Was Cameron, this supernatural boy, my friend?

"C'mon, I need to change out of my Spiderman gear." He motioned for me to follow.

I did.


	4. Darn Cats

**Book One: Day Two**

I awoke with an eerie light shining through the lilac curtains. I was sinking in the sheer amount of comforters on the bed I was in.

It took me a while to get up, I mean, the dream I had had the night before was wild. All of the adults had disappeared to leave me, an _orphan, _alone. There was a fire and a shape-shifting boy in there, too, but they didn't really matter.

I walked downstairs expecting to see my father making me breakfast and my mother typing away on her deep blue laptop.

When I saw Cameron I nearly fainted.

"Look who decided to get up!" He looked all too cheerful. His face was red from the heat of the stove, had he been making breakfast? He took my silence as a hint to go on.

"I made bacon. Didn't know it spit that much while it was frying." He went on to talk more about what he had made, but I had drifted off. A shape-shifting boy who could very easily rat me out for being homeless was making me breakfast because all of the adults were gone. Nothing was wrong with that, I thought sarcastically, nothing.

"So, what do you have planned for today? I was thinking we go boating. I've never been boating, and your bag has a picture of a sailboat on it, so I figured you knew how." Man, Cameron could talk.

"Yeah, my parents went sailing all the time. We actually had a boat." I drifted off thinking about my mother and my father. Were they thinking about her right now, wherever they were?

"Cool!"

We left a few minutes later, I having wolfed down my first full meal in ages. The streets were odd to me, their lack of cars giving them a strange feeling. I felt like I was in some sort of science-fiction/horror movie.

I was always more of a war movie kind of girl.

Suddenly, Cameron started running. No, not running, sprinting. I turned around to see what was chasing us, but nothing was there.

"Avery! Avery! Come see this!" He screamed as he ran.

I jogged feebly to catch up to him. When I was about ten feet away Cameron recoiled, grabbing his hand and screaming out in pain.

"God, what happened?" I said almost to myself, almost out loud.

"What the Hell?" he screamed, and, in one swift motion, Parker sat down on the sidewalk.

"Parker!" I yelled, but automatically realized that it was just stupid of me. It wasn't like a car was going to come and hit him. I took my time walking over to him.

"Avery, that cat bit me!" and the boy pointed at nothingness.

"Parker, there isn't a cat there anymore." I said, grabbing his now little hand.

"Yeah, it jumped over there." And he pointed to a cat a block down the road.

No way was that Parker's cat. It couldn't have gotten that far away that fast. But then again, nothing made sense anymore.


	5. Nathaniel

**Book One: Day Two, Part Two**

Parker still wanted to go boating. We walked through town on the way there, and my heart almost exploded when I saw the daycare.

The lights were on, and it seemed like there were people inside. From the small window on the door I could make out the face of Mary Terrafino. She was helping! Somebody was helping those kids, and that was all I needed to make my day fantastic.

I had always liked Mary. She usually knew what the right, moral thing to do was. Maybe she'd send people to look for the babies in the houses. For once though, I didn't care what Mary did. She had risen up to meet her new responsibilities, and in my eyes, she didn't have to do any more.

When we got to the marina, I let Parker pick out any speedboat he wanted. He picked the smallest one because it had candy in it. Candy, Gushers, and Spiderman seemed to be all that boy cared about.

As I sped into the strangely still ocean I turned around to check that Parker was ok, but Parker was gone.

Where he had sat, a fourteen-year-old boy stood majestically. His shaggy brown hair and deep, dark blue eyes were fascinating. I barely noticed what he was saying when he pointed at the wall.

"What is that?" as he talked his hair shifted to an even more beautiful position. I felt truly sad when I had to turn away from him. However, when I saw what he was pointing at, I momentarily forgot about his looks.

Where the horizon should have been, a large grayish wall stood firm. I could see it curve ever so slightly as it rose to the sky. It went as far as I could see. I stopped the boat.

"Can you see that, or is it just me? I mean I am a little crazy, but I've never seen something that large."

He walked over to me, a short distance in the small boat. My stomach dropped.

"No I see it, too… Nathaniel?" I turned to meet his heart-melting gaze.

"Yes, Nathaniel here. I wonder if that's why we haven't had rescue." He broke our eye contact to look up at the wall. It was so overpowering.

"Maybe," I trailed off. Suddenly, I wanted to get as far away from the water as possible.

"We should go inland. People will be wondering if we're rescue or just some kids trying to escape." He turned to sit back down, just after he took off his tiny shoes.

"Good thing I left the house as Cameron. I would have had to go home without a shirt on, too."

For some reason, I didn't think that was a good thing.


	6. Captain Caine

**Book One: Day Two, Part Three**

Nathaniel led the way home, catching the eye of everyone who passed. He dominated the road. He had a sort of powerfulness to him, and he was walking with me, Avery Ingle.

It didn't last long, though, for when we got into town, it seemed like everyone was gathered in one place. Including Sam.

When did Sam decide he wanted to return?

Something else had caught my eyes, though. A car had pulled into the center of the crowd, and some Coates kids were climbing out of it. The way they moved looked so rehearsed.

When a boy, he introduced himself as Caine Soren, climbed out, I felt Nathaniel leave my side. I had to follow him.

By the time he had left the crowd, he was running a full sprint. He wasn't even looking back. I could hear him counting back from 100. He had made it to "64" when he stopped and sat down in the alleyway next to the town's only church.

"What's the matter?" I asked quietly. I was surprised to find out that he had actually heard me.

"I can't get mad. Tell me something happy. Anything!" he yelled, but he sounded more scared than mad.

"Well, now that the adults are gone, we can go boating whenever you'd like. And you won't have to worry about getting caught running away from Coates. You can walk the streets with your head held high." I drifted off into thought after that one. I think it comforted me more than it had him.

"No, it isn't working. Something more. Something better." He ran his fingers through his perfect golden brown hair.

I knew what would make me happy right now. A nice warm hug from my mother.

So I hugged him. I sat down next to him, and I hugged him.

I could feel his breathing. What had just been fast was lengthening. Finally, after what seemed like a lifetime, he sighed.

"Thank you." He pulled away slowly. I almost wanted to reach out, to touch him, but that seemed like too much.

"So, what was that little episode about?" I had never pictured my life coming to this, sitting next to a shape-shifting boy in an alleyway.

"Oh, that was just Caine. I used to be in a club-like group with him. Him and a few others from Coates. He was the leader. That's what he's good at anyway. Leading. I bet that's what he's doing out there right now. Manipulating the whole town." This time, it was Nathaniel's turn. He leaned over and grabbed me with his perfect arms.

"Can you tell me why this is bothering you so much?" I said into his shoulder. Nathaniel pulled away to respond.

"Oh, because he isn't really who he's going to project to these people. He's dangerous. For all I know, he already took over Coates. Him and the others like him." He stared at the opposite wall, immersed in his thoughts. He didn't seem as angry anymore. Just a little frazzled.

"Other's like him?" I didn't want to pry, but the line was just too mysterious.

"The club we were in. It was a club for people who could do things. Things like my changing. It terrified me what others could do. Cause explosions, erase gravity, move things with their minds. It was all too much, so I ran." His words took a while to digest. Explosions? Telekinesis? What was this, the Justice League?

It was then I heard him.

"Now, who else speaks for Perdido Beach?" Caine asked.

Multiple people, including a girl called "Bouncing Bette" yelled Sam's name.

"Caine's not going to like that. He'll take down Sam for sure. Either that or force him to do something meaningless that will get him out of the way." Nathaniel mumbled, not showing any emotion in his voice.

A few other people were mentioned, but none with as many followers as Sam.

"I have to see this," Nathanial whispered to himself as he climbed to probably the only open windows towards the back of the steeple. I had to follow.

The Perdido Beach kids were Sam, Orc, Howard, Astrid, Quinn, Albert, Mary, Elwood, Dahra, and Cookie. Orc, a town bully, seemed to have stepped up as the leader of the town, Howard and Cookie being his followers. Albert had gained respect by opening the McDonalds, something I found stupid, but everybody else seemed to have taken as "the one normal thing about the FAYZ."

'FAYZ' being the name given to our situation by Orc himself.

I watched as Caine clearly talked Orc out of leading. That wasn't a surprise. He introduced a nerdy-looking boy by the name of "Computer Jack." Silly name, if you ask me.

Caine said everything with grace and ease, never showing any sign of fear or displeasure. He was the kind of person my father would have voted for during a presidential race.

"The best speakers are always the best leaders," he would say.

However, something about Caine just wasn't right. But it wasn't until he introduced a boy named Drake that Nathaniel actually reacted.

"What?" I mouthed to him.

"I'll tell you later." He mouthed back with a smile.

Just as Nathaniel had predicted, he nominated, or should I say assigned, Sam to the role of fire chief.

He went on to overly praise Mary for her work. The way he talked about her made me almost want to shake his hand and thank him, until of course I noticed Nathaniel's snarl. I patted him on the shoulder until he calmed down.

When I turned back to face the window, I noticed something that seemed to make Nathaniel twitch.

"We don't work for anyone. Captain Orc doesn't work for anyone, or under anyone, or follow anyone's orders." Howard commanded. Finally, a real emotion appeared on Caine's face.

Fury.

"I can't watch this," Nathaniel walked away from the window and sat down, "tell me when it's over."

Then, cutting through the suspense like butcher knife would butter, and earthquake shook the church. But it didn't seem to affect the kids across the street. In fact, they didn't even notice anything was wrong.

When I looked back to the church, I gasped. Cookie was lying, bleeding, on the floor, his right shoulder under the crucifix.

"Help me, help me!" he screeched, flailing his remaining limbs in an attempt to escape.

Elwood was quick to react, pulling the cross off of him. Caine was quick to undermine Sam.

"Your mother was a nurse," he said as if that made Sam a certified brain surgeon. My mother had been a lawyer, but that didn't make me able to win every arguments I entered.

Dahra stepped up, landing herself the job as nurse/doctor. There were probably better people for the job, but they were probably sitting at home eating ice cream and watching DVDs.

"We have to follow the Coates kids," Nathaniel was back next to me, breathing down my neck, "I have to know what happened to the rest of them. I have to know who else stepped up against Caine."


	7. Eavesdropping, Again

**Book One: Day Two, Part Four**

I couldn't really feel my hand anymore, Nathaniel's was crushing it. I wondered if petite little Cameron was used to being so muscular, if he was used to being able to drag somebody down a sidewalk without even trying.

As we followed Caine - very discretely of course - something caught my eye.

"Nathaniel, I wonder what's happening over there." I pointed to Astrid, who seemed to be bullying information out of 'Computer Jack.'

We watched as Diana came and saved him from what he actually seemed to be growing used to. Astrid went to watch Edilio bury Ashton. I almost wanted to go, but I realized I hadn't even known the girl. I had just failed to save her.

It looked like Sam was thinking the same thing as he stared towards the hole in the ground. Sam was a good person, and maybe now was the time that he'd step up and show it. Maybe he would stand against Caine.

Nathaniel snapped me out of my trance when he pulled me into the city hall building. Caine was in the mayor's office. No surprise there.

"Typically there is a speaker system set up between the mayor's office and the secretary's desk. Maybe we can listen through that." Nathaniel was right, finding a speaker just in time.

"Why am I begging for information here? Just tell me." Caine's smooth voice reeked of malice. So behind closed doors he isn't the "perfect speaker."

"She's on about two bars." Diana answered.

"Any idea what her powers may be? Lighter? Speeder? Chameleon? Not another Dekka, I hope. She was difficult." Nathaniel, at that moment, cut of the speaker system.

"Let's go," he ordered.

"Wait, can you tell me more now?" I asked as he glided out of the building.

"Sure, what do you want to know?" He said as I ran to catch up with his swift steps.

"Who was that kid? The one who's sheriff?" When I asked, I saw his expression harden.

"Oh, Drake Merwin. He doesn't have any powers, if that's what you mean. But he is a psychopath. Stay away from him at all costs." He turned to face me. Ice shot up my spine._ He_ wanted _me _safe.

"And what about Caine? What can he do other than play the role of a perfect leader?" I tried to be loose, for Nathaniel had gone rigid, his steps much shorter now.

"Caine can move things. He is telepathic. He was the one who hurt Cookie. I bet he was aiming for Orc or Howard, though. He was never very good at aiming." Nathaniel drifted off. He stared up at the houses that we passed. Each one brought more and more anger to his face.

"Are you ok?" I asked putting my hand on his shoulder, but it never made contact.

Where Nathaniel had previously stood, a seven-year-old boy with a black bowl cut and terrifying black eyes now sat.

"Hello Miss, my name is Damon. What's yours?"


	8. Damon

**Book One: Day Two, Part Five**

He looked like the kind of little boy from horror movies that would kill his whole family because he didn't get the toy he wanted. He even talked that way, too.

"Avery, is everything all right? You look like you might get sick." He held out his hand. His eyes flaring up like an animal going in for the kill. I fought the urge to run like the poor antelope about to die.

"Y-yes, I'm fine." I gasped for words.

"I am tired, Avery. I must sleep now." He put his hand back down at his side and turned to march down the street. I hadn't noticed it had grown dark out until I was walking with darkness himself.

"Avery? I seem to have forgotten where I live." He had stopped in the middle of the road.

"Oh, we, um, live down here." He held out his pale little hand for me, but I denied it.

"Why won't you touch me, Avery? You seem to love holding Parker's hand." Damon stared at me with his empty eyes. His voice was so childish, but the words still caused me to jump.

"Oh, I'm sorry." Reluctantly, I grabbed on to his clammy hand. Why did he have to be so cold?

"What do you have planned for tomorrow? I would very like to spend one day relaxing alone." I shuddered when I thought about being alone with that boy.

Luckily, the cat was back.

In one flash of black, the cat released his needle-like claws into Damon's arm. He burst into instant tears, and I had Cameron back.

"Whoa. I'm bleeding." He pet his arm where the cat had laid his claws. "I guess I'm back where you left me this morning."

I was still a little shocked at the pure creepiness of Damon. Cameron could tell.

"Oh, freaked you out, huh? I named him Damon after the kid from the Omen, Damien." Now that he said it, I realized how much alike they were. I, however, being his guardian, wasn't going to hang myself.

"Yeah," I answered carefully, "I suddenly understand why Nathaniel tried so hard to keep himself from getting angry."

"Yes and no. Nathaniel just doesn't like changing. Something inside him just doesn't want to be trapped in here." Cameron tapped his temple.

"And you do?" I said with all the sarcasm I could muster.

"No, especially when I have to watch somebody else going on my boating trip."

"Maybe tomorrow, kid. We got the rest of our lives." I patted his back, but he shifted in place.

"If Drake is really the Law Enforcement in this godforsaken place, that might not be that long."


	9. Bouncing Bette

**Book One: Day Five**

Sadly, Cameron was proven right faster than he had expected. Drake's team caused Ashton to find a friend only a few days after the Coates kid's arrival.

It all started when a group of children, including Parker, had huddled around Bette. She was performing a "magic trick" as the crowd had called it, but Parker and I knew better. Little lights were coming out of her hands, attracting every child in the Northern side of town.

Including Orc.

Orc and two other thugs made his way into the crowd. All of them had bats. In seconds, I had Parker out of their line of fire and away from the crowd.

They went after Bette and only Bette, hitting her on the head with a bat. I shielded Parker's eyes from the blow. Immediately she swayed as if she were about to pass out. Then, very slowly, she made her way to the firehouse.

Anger swelled up inside of me. No matter how many times those boys picked fights, how could they hit an innocent girl? Leaving Parker to wait with another child and a boy my age, I ran to see what was happening.

It seems like Sam did, too. He raced over to confront Orc, a losing battle if you ask me. Rushing into the mix, Sam put himself into a sticky situation. Sam dodged Orc's bat, but after a few swings, Edilio took the offensive route and rammed into Orc, which surprisingly knocked him off of his feet. Finally, one of Orc's thugs reacted, going after Edilio.

People were crowding now, yelling nasty things to Orc. One voice cut through all the others.

"Nobody move," Drake said, a twisted smile on his face as he looked at Bette.

Orc took this opportunity to pound Edilio senseless. Sam leaped to his rescue, but Drake was faster. In one motion, Drake grabbed Orc and hit him in the nose. Orc eventually got back up, but Drake was already prepared. He took one of the baseball bats from thug number one. Repeatedly, he hit Orc with it. Once he was done, he turned to Sam.

"How about you tell me what's going on, Mr. Fire Chief."

Sam went on to tell him that Orc had hit her; Drake went on to not care. He turned to ask thug number one, a boy named Chaz, what had happened.

"She was using the power." He pointed at Bette almost casually.

I gasped. Automatically, I brought Parker over with me. Was what he was doing enough to get your skull opened? I reentered the conversation at Edilio.

"You have rules against doing magic tricks?" he sounded almost sarcastic, almost really pissed off.

After more arguing, Drake handed Sam a list of all of the rules. They continued to pass angry comments, and soon Drake left. Sam followed his lead shortly after.

I however, needed to know something. It took all of my energy and willpower to approach Drake.

"May I have one, too?" I felt like crying. His face was so cold, so full of hatred.

"Whatever." He shoved a piece of crumpled paper into my hand, just as he had Sam. Before leaving, he looked down at Parker and smiled.

"Nice to see you, Caine will be happy to know you're here. Here we thought you'd made it out before the walls came down." Drake turned and left with the other three boys. A shudder shook my entire body.

On our way home, I noticed Sam walking Bette home. I hoped they had at least taken her to Dahra or something. I'd been concussed before, and it wasn't fun.

**Book One: Day Six**

I awoke today to find a second grave.


	10. It Isn't Over Yet

**Book One: Day Eight**

Days passed slowly. After all this time, kids were still sitting alone at home watching DVDs and playing video games. Did no one care that absolutely no one had come for us?

I wondered what was going to happen when food ran out. Nobody seemed to even worry about food. Nobody except Caine's people, of course. That was one thing I enjoyed about his dictatorship. He had also put a limit on what people could take from Ralphs. Caine had actually sent out search teams. He, "ruthless Caine," had saved the lives of the babies and toddlers stuck at home.

Daily, I would send a different form of Cameron into the store. He would take something still fresh and leave. We had also become especially happy with the house we had chosen. Our little "happy old couple" must have gone through some tough times, for the amount of canned foods locked away in the basement was amazing, with expiration dates leading up to ten years from now.

We, unlike most kids, seemed to be set for life.

Nathaniel had also taken it on himself to tend the small five foot by five foot garden in the home's backyard. For some reason, plants made him happy.

"When's your birthday?" I asked him while he watered the various fruits and vegetables.

"Well, Cameron's is thanksgiving this year, making him thirteen. I'd be fifteen then, I guess. I never really thought if we'd have separate birthdays or not. I guess there isn't any way to truly know. What about yours?"

"Mine is February 3."

There was some sort of commotion down the road. I didn't bother to find out more. Probably some kid upset that they missed the big movie that was supposed to air on TV or something.

"Hey, Avery?" Nathaniel looked up at me with his killer blue eyes. Why did he have to look like that? Why couldn't he look all gangly like Cameron?

"Yeah," I replied.

"Did you happen to hear anything about Albert?"

"No, what about him?" This intrigued me. Nathaniel had been Parker for most of the day, probably because of some sort of nightmare he had had. How could he have heard about something I hadn't?

"Oh, well, I think our cat isn't the only one." He went back to what he was doing, as if he didn't want me to know any more. I didn't push him.

"Emma? Emma!" The kids down the street had gotten louder. Some of the preschoolers could be heard too.

"I wonder what that's about." Nathaniel put down his gardening supplies, brushed off his hands, and made his way to the road. I followed him.

Distantly, I could make out Mary and the kids. After a few seconds, I made out Sam's figure. He was clutching Anne's hands. I think this was the first time I had seen her without Emma. Wait, what had she been yelling?

"Where's Emma?" Apparently Nathaniel had been thinking the same thing.

I looked around frantically for her. I remembered when we were little she told me that her parents had always dressed her in yellow and Anne in pink. She had always loved yellow. She had a sunshine themed birthday party in second grade.

Birthday.

"Oh, my God!" I realized what had happened a few seconds too late. The two of us stood and watched as Anne joined her sister, wherever they are now.

"Where'd the girl go?" Parker tugged at my shirt. I looked down at him feebly.

"She went home to her Mommy." I patted his fire red hair.

"Well, if she can go, why can't I?" he stamped his foot on the pavement.

"Who knows, Thanksgiving is coming up soon."

Parker smiled and skipped back to the house. With him I felt my four and only friends slipping away.


	11. Out of the Box

**Book One: Day Eight, Part Two**

I watched Parker skip into the distance. Maybe Nathaniel would come back. Maybe even Cameron. I really needed somebody to talk to, but I didn't like forcing them to switch.

Parker sat down in the living room of our house. "Spiderman! Spiderman!"

How could he be so unaffected by what had just happened? Nathaniel obviously had, for he had been scared enough for a transformation. Nathaniel rarely turned into Parker.

"Ok, Parker. Which one do you want to watch?" I had spent part of the fourth day finding him the three movies. I had even watched them with him the first and second times. By the fourth, the movies had become "shower time" to me.

"Second one!" He pointed at the disk, his hand shaking. They always shook a little before they changed, and as happy as this kid was, I'd have Nathaniel back in no time.

I put the disk in, and Parker snuggled into one of the heavier blankets. He fell asleep after about ten minutes. That is, until people started yelling outside. I couldn't make out what they were saying, but I could make out who they were.

Drake Merwin and Diana Ladris were heading north, arguing on the way there. I watched them from the window. I noticed that Drake was clenching his fists around a bat he was carrying, as if he were about to hit her. I braced myself for the impact.

"He won't hurt her." Cameron was standing behind me.

"Who are you and what've you done with Parker? He doesn't get sad from Spiderman." For some reason I could still joke, even when I had just almost seen someone's brains. Again.

"Oh, he fell asleep and dreamt of our parents." Cameron looked heavily at the ground, as if he'd cry about it, too.

"Oh, I understand," I put my hand on his too pointy shoulder, "but what I don't understand is why Drake won't hurt someone."

"He won't hurt Diana, no matter what she says. Drake is far too afraid of Caine to do that, and Caine sort of, um, has a thing for her."

He looked so awkward. Somebody was obviously only just coming out of his cootie phase. I took my hand off of him. It did calm him down a bit.

I felt this was the best time to change the subject.

"So, what do you think about the twins?" I walked away from the window and sat down on the couch. Cameron took the arm chair.

"I think it freaked me out." Cameron forced a chuck.

"Me too. I can't believe we can still, what have kids been calling it? Poof?" Silly name if you ask me. I've been saying that a lot lately…

"Yeah, I think Nathaniel almost threw up, he was so terrified. He'll only have a few days left."

"And what makes you think that?" Was I getting defensive of him? I forced myself to think he was just a torment to poor Cameron, but I was having a hell of a time doing it.

"Well, I imagine we all have the same birthday, as Nathaniel expressed to you earlier. But unlike him, I believe that we will grow up separately."

Suddenly, Cameron twitched violently. I stood up so fast, I knocked over the coffee table. The only thing I had ever seen like this was a seizure. Before I could make it to him, Cameron stopped.

"That was surreal." He rubbed his eyes as if he had just woken up from a nap.

"What just happened?" I demanded from Cameron, who seemed way too calm.

"I believe Nathaniel just tried to talk."


	12. Anger and Cowardice

**Book One: Day Eight, Part Three**

I was shocked. Shocked at Cameron's words and shocked that I could still feel shocked in this God-awful place.

"What? Like, out loud?" I had reverted back into confused teenage girl mode.

"Yes. He has never tried that before. Nobody has." Cameron rubbed the back of his head, something he only did when he was stressed.

"What was he trying to say?"

"I don't know. All I felt was the sensation that I was turning into him, but I came out of it out here, not in there." He motioned at his forehead with his palm, as if he wanted to hit himself but couldn't.

"It had to have been important if it caused him to do that to you." Suddenly, I became overwhelmed with what it was. What had we been talking about? Him leaving?

"Yeah, he won't talk now, no matter how much I try and make him." Suddenly, Cameron's facial expression changed. "God! People like Caine can use their powers to take over a small town and all I can do is use them to piss myself off!" Cameron was angry now.

"Calm down, Cameron. Some people don't even have any." I didn't know what to do. I hadn't seen Damon since that second night, and now I didn't have a cat to bring somebody else back. It was like some twisted version of the hulk where instead of turning into a monster I was preparing myself for a creepy little kid.

"Why should I? I mean, I know you don't have powers, but you also don't have to worry every time you feel anything!" He put extra feeling into the word anything.

The past few times they changed I hadn't been looking directly at them, so I was dumbfounded yet again by the process. Blackness took over Cameron's hair, starting at the roots and flowing down to the very tips, curling inward a little at the end. The clothing Cameron had been wearing seemed to eat Damon, for they were big on the boy. Next, he blinked his eyes, closing them green and opening them blacker than the night sky. As they opened, the motion seemed to turn Cameron's pale skin even paler.

"How wonderful it is to be out at last. I was beginning to feel like a caged animal. Speaking of caged…" Slowly and, oh, so creepily, Damon pointed his short yet boney finger at the exposed window.

About a block away, Howard, Panda, and a few others I didn't know were pushing a grocery cart down the street. It took me a while to figure out what was in it.

Sam!

"Come Damon," I motioned for him to follow. He crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow.

"Why should I? I'm sure they're just doing their jobs. Are you sure you want me changing in front of law enforcement? Do you want my head smashed in? Better yet, do you want Nathaniel's head smashed in?" He saw the look on my face and laughed. What a twisted little boy.

"Come on, Damon," I stood firm, I even extended a hand, "We're going now."

He flared his eyes, the larger he made them, the scarier they got.

"Fine, but if I die like Bette, it will be on your conscience, Avery." I could hear him exhale in defeat.

We crossed in-between two houses, for they had gone into the school - the gym, to be more specific. I couldn't find anywhere to properly eavesdrop, so I went old school and pressed my ear against the door.

"This isn't going to work, Avery." Damon had said when we walked in. The words shook in my head as I held my breath and leaned in towards the conversation. We entered at a turning point.

"Let me guess: you're secretly a wizard who was raised by muggles." Sam had made a jab at Caine, and a good one, too.

For a few seconds there was silence. Someone by the door let out a sympathetic yet amused "oh."

"Yeah. Kind of," Caine snarled. Caine went on to describe Diana's system for measuring power. He said it in a very cocky manner, causing me to think he was high on her scale. I wondered what Cameron was. I was scared at what Caine was setting himself up to be.

"Four bars, Sam. I'm the only one she's ever read who has four bars. I could pick you up, fly you into the ceiling, or slam you against a wall." Caine went on showboating and Sam went on rolling it off his shoulders. How brave of him.

Then I felt a large hand land on my shoulder. I muffled a scream.

"Having fun?" Nathaniel whispered into my ear. The warmth of his sweet, sweet breath almost made me swoon.

"Where'd you come from?" I asked as quietly as I could.

"I think that little creep is a sadist. Either that or he's team Caine all the way. He was so happy that Caine was winning he was about to wet himself." I was so obsessed with his voice, I barely heard the impact.

"Caine must have thrown Sam. We have to leave. It isn't safe here. Especially if you're with me" Nathaniel grabbed my hand and began to pull me down the hall.

"No!" I hissed at him, keeping my voice low. "Sam needs help!"

As much as I fought, Nathaniel was too strong. He pulled me out of the school and towards our house.

"You can't do this! You said yourself Caine's dangerous! We have to do something, tell someone!" By now I was yelling, digging the soles of my beat up shoes into the pavement.

Immediately, Nathaniel stopped and turned to face me.

"Can you please be quiet? They can still hear you." He stared into my face with so much intensity I almost wanted to listen to him, but I'm too stubborn for that.

"No, I can't! You've turned your back on Sam! Without him, what do you think will happen? Caine knows you're here, and you can only hide so long!" I screamed into his face. My screaming seemed to make his face go soft.

"Oh, shut up." He almost whispered the words, and, in the middle of the street, kissed me.

My insides lit on fire. For that moment, I forgot all about how mad I was. All I wanted to do was stay like this forever. However, Nathaniel eventually pulled away.

"Now can you _please_ stop shouting?"


	13. And Romance

**Book One: Day Eight, Part Four**

"Whoa," I said as I pulled my fingers to my mouth.

"I'm sorry, I thought… I just thought it'd make you stop yelling." Nathaniel looked down at his shoes. I'd never seen him act so small.

"Oh, it did." I trailed off.

"Now things are going to get awkward, right? I ruined it." Bittersweet anger shook in Nathaniel's perfect voice. He had started to shake.

I grabbed his face in my hands, looking him strait in his eyes.

"No, you just made us something new. Something different, something Better."

A smile lit up his already shining face. "Magnificent."

"Now, can you please explain to me why you decided to leave Sam in the hands of someone you yourself labeled dangerous? Or, even better, why you put Cameron through Hell earlier today?" I shifted to my right, leaning my head to the side.

"If Caine, or any other Coates kid for that matter, were to find me, bad things would happen. And if you were with me, they'd probably do them to you, too." He put his hands on my shoulders, positioning me so I stood straight again. Before now I hadn't noticed just how tall Nathaniel was. He had at least half a foot on me.

"You didn't answer my second question." I tried to order him, but his size and strength was too much to be as firm as I had wanted.

"Oh, about the birthday thing? I hadn't meant to make an outward comment, I was just getting pretty loud in there. He had put the thought in my head that I was going to be leaving soon, and I just couldn't handle it. I feel really bad that I did that to him." Yet again, Nathaniel was acting so much smaller than he was.

"Forget about it, neither of you know for sure if you're right, so stop bothering each other. All you're doing is agitating each other." I could see the relief on Nathaniel's face.

"What do you think, though?" He sounded excited to hear what I had to say.

"I don't know what I think. I just know that I want you to stay." With my words, Nathaniel leaned in for another kiss.

For the first time, I liked the way the FAYZ was turning out.


	14. White Lies Turn Red

**Book One: Day Nine**

They rarely ever stayed one person this long. I guess Nathaniel was just too happy to come down from where he was.

Throughout the day, we continued to argue, but not nearly as much as yesterday. Whenever I would beg him to go help Sam, he would just refuse. He kept throwing his "for our safety" story at me, but by now it was just getting old. We had to help.

Finally, I gathered all of my courage and decided to lie.

"Nathaniel?" I walked outside to his garden, keeping my arms crossed.

"Yes?" He had a shovel in his hand. In one swift motion he sliced the dirt with it. My courage was almost driven into the ground with it. Almost.

"I'm going to help Sam." The eye contact was hard, but I pulled through.

"No, you're not. If they were to see me –"

"If they were to see _you_. That's why _I'm_ going. Alone." Never before had it been so hard to lie. I hoped he'd fall for it.

"You can't. Even without me, they'd know you knew something, and you'd just be stuck with Sam." Nathaniel had a point, but I wasn't done yet.

"Yes, but at least if I'm there you'd start caring." I could see my words had hurt him. Hopefully not enough to change into Cameron. Cameron wouldn't fall for my ruse.

"Don't do that," was all Nathaniel could muster. He sounded so feeble and weak. Perfect.

"I am." I turned and walked away. I got less than a block before Nathaniel caught me.

"I'm coming with you."

The bluff had worked.

When we got to the gym, it seemed empty, as it was normally. However, there was a now a small dent on the basketball hoop.

"We should check the classrooms." Nathaniel had quickly become the leader of our little rescue mission. He actually seemed quite happy with his doings. I guess I was just the push he needed.

One by one we peered into every classroom. We split up to do so, of course. I took the older-kid rooms and Nathaniel took the younger ones. Nothing seemed out of place, except a few overturned desks in a fourth grade math classroom. Some kids probably knocked them over on the first day.

Then I heard a yell. Nathaniel was in trouble.

I ran down the halls. The halls that had been the only real place I had had for the past two years. How could it have grown so different so fast?

I found him getting pulled out of the building by one of the boys who had attacked Bette, Chaz, from Coates. Nathaniel was out cold, blood covering one side of his wonderful face.

He had been right. We shouldn't have come. Chaz was loading him into a nearby car, and it was my fault. I had to follow them. I had to do that for Nathaniel.


	15. Blue Horizons

**Book One: Day Nine, Part Two**

I walked as far as Ralphs before I found a car that still had the keys inside. Poor driver was probably still in it when they went. I was insanely lucky, too, that the grocery store guards had vacated. They wouldn't let us take can of tuna, let alone a car.

Everyone had been complaining all week about how hard it was to drive. Had they not paid attention back in the day? Back when they would sit with their parents in the front seat, joking about nothing in particular?

Oh, how I missed it.

It took me only two minutes to figure out which pedal was gas and which one was brake. After that, it was easy sailing.

However, it looked like it hadn't been for Chaz, but I actually found his problems a good thing, the skid marks he had left for me. I could follow them down the highway, leading me straight to their destination.

I should have known from the beginning, though, that they were headed for Coates. Where else would they have gone? Lake Tramonto?

I pulled up to the gates as the sun was going down. Silently, I wondered how our blue horizon remained if that terrible gray wall stood in its way. I was sure there was some sort of scientific answer, and I was sure it wasn't right. We were in a new world now.

The second I got there, I was amazed by the damage. It looked like a bomb had gone off inside Coates. I was also dumbfounded by the amount of security still here.

Until, of course, I saw Caine. He must have come here for some reason bigger than no-good townspeople like me could even begin to understand, and with him, he must have brought security.

Security from whoever did this sort of damage to the school.

After much self debate, I chose to wait until I could properly sneak in. I mean, what was going to happen? Nathaniel would sit and wait while Caine took care of his business.

I mean, it isn't like they were going to seriously hurt him.


	16. DID

**Book One: Day Nine, Part Three**

Nathaniel awoke in a dusty, nearly empty room. He couldn't feel his hands.

"Where am I?" He mumbled to himself. Nevertheless, someone answered.

_You're in Coates, you imbecile. Don't you remember? You had English in here, _Damon hissed at his words. Jealousy flooded Nathaniel's every core. Avery could escape him, but he never could.

_Stop being mean to him, _Cameron ordered, controlling as always, _you'd forget, too, if you had gotten hit over the head with a bat._

_ Well, technically, I was. _Damon's laughs shook in Nathaniel's head. Their head.

Cameron growled quietly. Nathaniel and the others could barely hear it.

"Nathaniel?" an outside voice shook the room, sounding like a siren compared to their thoughts.

It was Brianna. She looked so thin; her red braids spiraling around her face, making it appear even gaunter. She was hunched over to the point that she looked almost apelike.

"Brianna?" Nathaniel felt his voice shake. He hated when it did that.

"My goodness, Nathaniel! I thought you were out of here! You had been gone for days." She sounded truly upset. Brianna had been the one who had brought him in to Caine's little club, for she had been one of Cameron's closer classmates.

"I wish I had chosen to leave back then." It was a lie. If he had left, he wouldn't have met Avery.

_Now _that_ is the lie. _Damon snapped. _You're just too head over heels for that girl you can't think straight. How about you get your head back to reality and cry like the rest of us._

_ I would like that very much. _Cameron joked, trying to stop Nathaniel from bringing Damon out.

"Well, now you're cemented like the rest of us." Brianna ended her sentence with a small sob. Nathaniel went to comfort her.

It was then he realized he couldn't move. He felt so helpless lying on the floor, unable to move.

"Getting up the first time is the hardest." Brianna whispered.

_Oh, my God. _Cameron gasped. Damon laughed a very false, empty laugh and went silent. Parker woke up.

_Why are our hands so funny looking? _Parker asked what everybody else had been thinking.

In the darkness, the boys could only see two large shadows where their hands should be.

"What is this?" Nathaniel almost yelled, frightening Brianna.

"It's cement. Our powers come from our hands, Caine says, so he cemented them. He left those who chose to follow him free. But us, we're trapped."

It was then they he noticed her hands. They, too, were covered in two gray blocks. Caine was more of a monster than he had thought.

_Here I go. _Damon shouted, as he did every time he took over.

The change started, Nathaniel could feel it. It shook up and down his spine, like an earthquake only he felt. He closed his eyes and began to let it take him. When the shaking stopped, he opened them up, preparing to see things from the back of Damon's mind.

_What! _Damon shouted.

Nathaniel was still in the room. He was still in control.

"Wow, Caine actually got something right." Nathaniel laughed out loud.


	17. A History of Violence

**Book One: Day Nine, Part Four**

Fear boiled inside of me as I snuck into the school. Where could Nathaniel be? I shook off the thought, for I didn't even know where I was. The intense darkness of the school made it even harder to navigate.

After a few minutes, I found a series of small, heavily lit rooms. The third one down had me particularly interested because its door lay broken across the hall.

Inside, papers littered the cream tiled floors. Propped haphazardly against the wall furthest from the doorway was a bent filing cabinet. I knew I should have been looking for Nathaniel, but something about it called to me.

Folders with names marked red and blue covered the floor like a paper carpet. All of them seemed to blend together, fogging my mind. One, however, jumped out at me the second I laid eyes on it.

Poole, Nathaniel.

It couldn't be him. It had to be someone else. I reached for the folder, grabbing it with shaking hands. Clipped inside was a photo of Nathaniel, staring blankly at the photographer, a large brown bruise stamped on his left temple.

Cameron's words flooded my mind. Hadn't he said he had been the beginning? The others were just sections of him brought out by his stupid "power?" I dropped the folder as if it had suddenly turned red hot. However, it landed wide open.

_Poole, Nathaniel, _the handwriting detailed, _Dissociative Identity __Disorder and Depression. May become violent if provoked. Has a history of family abuse._

I didn't know what to do. Nathaniel wasn't violent, he wasn't depressed. Nathaniel, my Nathaniel, was perfectly happy. However, he also wasn't entirely real.

But if that was true, why did he have his own file? Something was wrong. After much debate, I decided to let Nathaniel explain himself when I found him. If I ever found him in this labyrinth of a school.

At the end of the hallway a light forced its way through a musty window. I could hear voices talking through the wall on the other side. One of the voices was definitely Caine's, but the others were either too quiet or completely unfamiliar. One voice - male, probably - sounded particularly frightened. I decided to check it out.

After looking around, I found a set of two large wooden doors. Both had windows in the center.

Inside, I could see a majority of the leading Coates kids standing in a half circle. They were all facing another boy, who stood almost completely alone. He was being bound. I couldn't see his face, but I knew he wasn't Nathaniel.

Computer Jack was shouting something and running back and forth. It was now that I noticed the cameras spread out around the cafeteria. What was going on?

Caine shot a look at look at Jack, his eyes blazing with impatience. Jack started counting down loud enough for even me to hear him.

It was then that the boy erupted like a rocket about to launch itself into orbit. A large crack split the walls surrounding the doors. I panicked, flying to the ground. Dust, rock, and wood fell on top of me as the walls and ceiling crumbled. The force nearly knocked me out, cutting off most of the feeling in my lower body. It was all I could do not to scream in pain.

I looked up, dust stinging my eyes. Through the newly created cloud, I could see the Coates kids.

The boy was gone. Jack looked quite happy with himself. Caine turned slowly to face his people. For a brief second, I thought I saw fear.

It must have been the dust.


	18. A Voice from Nowhere

**Book One: Day Nine, Part Five**

Nathaniel had - after about an hour of almost ripping his arms out of their sockets - taught himself how to drag his hands across the tiled floors. About fifteen minutes had been wasted attempting grass. _Maybe later, _he had thought.

_Come on, _Cameron shouted at himself, _remember, remember, remember!_

Since the four of them had woken up, Cameron had been yelling almost nonstop. He grew very aggravated whenever he couldn't do something, and the fact that he couldn't remember why they had been alone was killing him.

_Does anybody else remember? _He asked for the thousandth time. A chorus of 'no's and a few nasty phrases from Damon were offered, but nothing could calm him down.

The only thing that bothered Nathaniel, however, was the fact that he didn't know where Avery was. Was she somewhere here, all alone and forgotten? Or was she back in town, wondering where he had disappeared to?

_Oh, shut up! _Damon whined, reverting back to his real seven-year-old self. _Get your head out of the clouds and maybe show some signs of self preservation! We need food, and according to pigtails, we don't have any!_

Damon made a point. Parker didn't do well when he got hungry.

Without warning, a blast shook the hallway. When was Andrew's birthday? All Nathaniel remembered was that it was in November. Nathaniel moved slowly towards the blast's origin.

When he arrived at the cafeteria all he found was destruction surrounded by an ominous silence. Whoever had been here had left it to crumble, which sadly, it had.

One wall had completely fallen along with parts of the ceiling. Caine was probably happy to have Andrew out of the picture; he had always been a threat.

"You there!" a voice shook the hall. A younger kid, one Nathaniel didn't know, was running towards him.

"Wh-what?" Nathaniel stuttered. He hadn't talked since Brianna, and his mouth was dead dry. Water was hard to find in Coates.

"You aren't supposed to be in here!" He had a large bat in his hands. A kid without any powers. Silently, Nathaniel wondered how long Caine would keep him around before dropping him off at Perdido forever.

_If he even makes it that far, _Damon laughed.

"I, I didn't know." Nathaniel said, trying to stand as tall as he could with his hands at his feet.

"Oh, you're that new kid. Well, we have rules here. And one of them is that nobody goes where Andrew's been. Too dangerous."

_Ironic that they want to keep kid's that they practically immobilized safe. _Cameron forced a cold laugh.

"Go back to where we put you," the boy motioned with his bat, "and don't come back. We don't want blood on our hands."

He laughed as he turned and strut around a corner. Nathaniel, too, turned. He only got a few feet when he heard another voice.

"Help." The small voice called. It sounded like it was a mile away.

"Hello?" Nathaniel called out.

_Great idea. Yell into the darkness seconds after you just got lectured by a kid with a bat. _Damon grumbled.

"Help." The voice silenced Damon with its second cry.

"Where are you?" Nathaniel said, looking around. Where could this voice be coming from?

"Nathaniel." A cough followed this time. It was a girl's cough.

"Who are you?" Nathaniel yelled this time. Damon began to say something, but Nathaniel pushed it back. He needed silence right now.

He waited a few seconds for a response, but nothing came. The voice had disappeared. Panic filled his every core.

"Hello?" he shouted as loud as he could. "Where are you?"

_Try the rubble! _Cameron tried. He seemed almost as scared as Nathaniel.

They all worked on dragging the blocks towards the rock. As they reached the mountain of dust, Nathaniel noticed something that made his heart drop.

Long brown hair.

"Avery!" He shouted, reaching out to pull the rocks off of her. When his hands stood firm in the cement, he let out a long yell of frustration.

"Help!" Against his better judgment, and the judgment of Cameron and Damon, he screamed for the boy with the bat. After a few more screams, the boy returned.

"What did I tell you?" He yelled as he turned the corner.

"It wasn't me. I found, I found a girl!" Nathaniel felt the fear take over. He didn't know what to do.

"What? You just found a girl?" The boy didn't believe Nathaniel at first, his voice leaking sarcasm.

"Yes, come! Come help!" He motioned with a flick of his head for the boy to come. The boy walked over slowly.

"Oh, my goodness!" The boy shouted, bringing a hand to his mouth.

"Go get help." Nathaniel growled.

"I will, I'll go get Caine." And the boy disappeared.

Nathaniel sat with Avery. He so feeble. Worthless. He couldn't even check for a pulse. She could be dead, and all he could do was sit there staring at the corpse.

About ten minutes passed before the boy, along with a few others that Nathaniel half recognized, arrived.

"Knock him out, dig her free, bind her hands, and put them back where they came from." The boy flicked his hands upward. Again, darkness clouded Nathaniel's vision.


	19. Crushed

**Book One: Day Nine, Part Six**

"She's waking up," a voice called from the darkness. A sharp pain stung in my right leg. Had I fallen from my bike?

"Avery?" Another voice, a boy, whispered. He sounded afraid.

I felt something hard against my arm. It felt stone-like. Was it a wall?

I could remember something about falling. Falling rocks.

"Can you hear us?" The voice called. It sounded so familiar.

"Yes." I said. "Where am I?"

"You're at Coates." The voice said, with a frightened laugh.

The voice came out of the shadows. It was Nathaniel. With one look at him, I remembered everything. The kidnapping, the boy in the cafeteria, the wall…

I went to sit up, to get a better look at my surroundings. My hands held me down.

Or should I say, the concrete on my hands held me down.

Before now, the pain in my leg had clouded the numbness of my hands. I let out a single scream.

"Yes," Nathaniel said, almost in tears, "We're all like this."

A crowd of people swarmed around us, each hunched over like apes. Three of them were looking very sympathetically at me. The others just looked hungry.

"Why?" I asked, even though I already knew the answer. Caine. We were in Caine's world now.

"He figured out that our powers originate in our hands. I guess they just bound you anyway. Considering your situation, I'm surprised they thought it necessary." He looked away, as if I had suddenly become too hard to look at.

My situation?

"Help me sit up." I ordered Nathaniel.

At first, he seemed almost hesitant. Once I was up, I realized why. Blood was pooling around my leg, flowing freely from a long cut on my knee. My leg looked purple. I had never seen anything like it.

"I'm surprised you got out from under that wall alive," a tall, strong-looking girl said a little too casually.

I felt like fainting. Nathaniel looked like he did, too.

"Don't like blood?" I asked, fighting the urge to scream again.

"No, I don't like guilt. I did this. If I hadn't met you this never would have happened. You never would have come here." Nathaniel kept going, but I blocked him out. I couldn't stand hearing him blame himself.

"Be quiet," I finally spoke up, "I've had worse, and meeting you is the best thing that has happened to me in a long time."

He was quiet for a while. Every once in a while he would ask if I was feeling any pain. I would force out a "no" in response.

I looked back to all of the facts I had learned about bones, which wasn't very much. Could a crushed bone kill me? Would I lose my leg? If so, who would do it? I guess the knowledge didn't really help when it came from television, anyway.

After a while, one of the sympathetic girls, Brianna, came to pull me out of my thoughts.

"They took Taylor." She said.

"Who?" Nathaniel asked in a hushed tone. As if somebody cared what we prisoners said.

"Drake and a few others. I think they're going to hurt her."

As if they haven't already.


	20. The Healer

**Book One: Day Nine, Part Seven**

My arms were shaking. Was this a bad sign?

Everything sounded quieter than it had a few minutes earlier, echoing in my ears but never really making it to my mind.

It was cold. Freezing.

Nathaniel had left my side some time ago. Something about a van returning. Something about food.

The tremor moved throughout my body, pulling me out of reality. My eyes began to flutter closed. A large popping noise rang out, pulling me from my trance. Somebody screamed in response.

A gunshot.

Feeling exploded in my wrists. I looked at my hands. I could see my hands.

Where did the concrete blocks go?

A green light shone through the window. Another scream rang out. What was happening out there?

A few minutes of silence passed. I felt my legs grow numb. At least it was better than the pain.

Voices crept down the halls. I could hear Nathaniel. He was moving fast. He was counting again.

"She's in here," he said, his voice shaking.

"Oh, my." A girl's voice that I didn't recognize entered the room. "She looks almost as bad as I did."

"A wall fell on her. Can you fix her, like you fixed Sam?" Nathaniel begged. I had never heard him sound so afraid.

"I'll try, but other than myself, I've never healed injuries this bad," the girl's voice sounded rusty as she moved closer. What was she going to do?

I screamed as her hands met my leg. I screamed as the numbness fell and the pain returned. I screamed when she moved to my hands.

I fell silent as the world grew dark.

**Book One: Day Nine, Part Eight**

I was staring at the sky, the sky and the tall girl who was standing to the left of my vision.

"She's awake," Dekka said.

"Oh," I felt myself slide to the ground. Who had been carrying me?

I looked up and saw it was Nathaniel, a smile spread across his perfect face.

I expected to fall. To fall and smack my head on the pavement as I returned to my rightful spot on the ground. However, my legs stood firm.

"You will have a nasty scar. Lana couldn't fix that." For the first time today, Nathaniel radiated happiness.

"Lana?" Why wasn't I dead? All I could remember was pain. Lots and lots of pain.

"A girl Sam found in the desert. She has the power to heal people. She healed Sam's knee and everybody's hands." Nathaniel pointed to Sam, who was walking towards the front of the group. He had a girl next to her. She must be Lana.

"Where are we going?" I hoped it was home.

"Back to town. Back to food and water. I think I'm going to eat something nice today." He seemed so lost in his thoughts. I let him be.

For the next few feet I rolled my ankles every time I took a step. I must have looked like a fool.


	21. Monologues Always Come Towards the End

**Book One: Day Thirteen**

I woke up feeling fantastic. Every inch of me felt like today was going to be my day to shine.

For two years, I had lived in fear that something would take away my life. That one day I could be living fine, but that the next would be filled with pain. But then the FAYZ came. The FAYZ came, and I was given a chance to live my life happy.

And for once, I took it.

I befriended someone against my better judgment. They were the first I had in a long time. They were something I needed a lot.

I went sailing again. I went sailing and didn't think of my parents. And while I was out on our little ocean, I met somebody I'll never, ever forget.

I actually let myself fall for someone. And I fell hard, too. Before the FAYZ, I barely even talked to people, let alone guys like Nathaniel.

I went on a rescue mission. A failed one, but a rescue mission just the same.

I learned how to drive. Something I never would have been able to do, considering I'd never have a "parent or guardian" to drive with me.

I found happiness in the hardest situation, something it seemed like a lot of kids had done. Maybe, just maybe, we could pull through this situation without anyone else getting hurt.

This sort of happiness never would have come to me before the FAYZ, and now that Caine had calmed down, I didn't have a ton to worry about.

Which I guess is why I didn't see the events of today coming.


	22. Coyotes Usually Target Children

**Book One: Day Thirteen, Part Two**

For the past few days, I had woken up to Parker. Cameron told me it was nightmares, but I knew better. Thanksgiving was coming up, and it had Nathaniel on edge.

"I want ice cream!" Parker yelled in a singsong voice. He danced into the kitchen, hopping up to grab the freezer handle, which was about two feet out of his reach.

"I don't think we have any." The happiness left his face faster than the ice cream we had had grown mold.

"Can we go get some?" He looked up at me like a puppy wanting his bone. I couldn't resist.

"We can go into town and see if Albert has some." I knew Albert was working on his "Thanksgiving Feast," but I had to give it a chance. Maybe by the time we got there, he'd be somebody else.

Parker walked in a zigzag formation down the middle of the street. Every once in a while, he would come to a bird or a squirrel, taking the time to talk to it for a few seconds. All of the animals seemed to have grown especially tame since the FAYZ. Either that or they were happy about the trash.

Every trash bin was filled to the brim. Some kids had even dragged them out to the side of the road, as if the trash collector would come take it away.

As I walked past one particularly full bin, it fell over. I watched as the road behind it seemed to shift. I shook my head. It must have been a mirage.

We reached the McDonalds, the closed sign hung unmoved on the door.

Parker must have seen it before me, though, because was sprinting across town square.

That was what I thought, of course, until I heard the screaming.

What looked like hundreds of golden brown dogs tore through the streets. I had never seen that many coyotes in one place. And to make it worse, they all seemed to be running to one place.

Which sadly, was exactly where Parker had chosen to run.

My first instinct was to hide. My second was to run to Parker. Screw self preservation.

I sprinted towards the boy, swinging my arms back and forth as fast as I could. I wasn't fast enough. Parker swung open the day care doors. He disappeared behind them within seconds.

With the momentum I had built up from running, I flung myself into my past home, stirring up a cloud of dust and ash. For now I was safe.

But my only friends were not.


	23. Whip Hand

**Book One: Day Thirteen, Part Three**

_Around the corner, Parker. Around the corner. There has to be a back door._ Cameron's voice mashed into Parker's thoughts. He didn't know what to do. He was terrified.

_Stop scaring him! _Nathaniel blasted through Cameron's panicked orders.

_ What am I supposed to do? Let him stay in here and get us all eaten? _Cameron's yells startled Parker. He didn't like when people argued.

_See! See what you're doing? _Nathaniel's voice cracked.

_I believe you are both scaring him, blockhead, _Damon said with a laugh. He seemed to be enjoying himself, despite the situation.

Drake entered the building, looking completely inhuman. Mary flew across the room, screaming in anger. Drake used his newest weapon, a whip that protruding from his shoulder, to attack her.

_Cool hand. _For once, Damon's comment reeked of fear.

Drake released Mary.

In the blink of an eye, a coyote was on top of Parker, its claws digging into his skin.

_It's ok, _Cameron said, knowing full well he'd be in the real world in a few seconds. He would be the one to feel the real pain.

Tears fell from Parker's eyes, like most of the other toddlers in the day care.

Then, shocking the beast, Parker was gone. Where he had been, a new boy laid. Cameron pushed the coyote off of him.

"You guys won't eat the kids, will you?" Drake added with a laugh. A coyote padded to his side. He had an obvious affect of the others.

"Pack Leader agreed. No kill. No eat."

"Until…" Drake pushed.

"Until Whip Hand say."

The coyote spoke. It opened its mouth and spoke English words.

_What the Hell? _Nathaniel whispered.

_That doggie just spoke! _Parker gasped.

_This just gets better and better. _Damon added.

"I have to get out of here," Cameron said.

**Day Thirteen, Part Four**

I watched as Sam crept through the alleyway. He could save Parker.

After returning from Coates, Nathaniel had reluctantly told me about the battle between Sam, Drake, and Caine. Drake had shot Sam, but once the blocks were removed from his hands, Sam had blown off Drake's arm. Sam had a power.

Would he grow to be just like Caine?

I hoped not, for right now he was Parker's only hope.

It was when he walked away that I swore. Just as Sam was beginning to grow responsible, he just walked away.

Maybe it was too much for just him. Maybe he'd come back.


	24. Escape

**Book One: Day Thirteen, Part Five**

The smell of the coyotes stung Cameron's lungs. He couldn't take it much longer.

_Wimp, _Damon barked.

Then, all of a sudden, Taylor was standing amongst the children, a tray of meat in her hands.

"Hi. I brought food." And with her words, she threw the meat against the wall.

Drake was slow to react, and, literally with a crack of a whip, Taylor has disappeared.

_Teleportation rules_. Nathaniel laughed.

The coyotes flew at the meat, fighting each other for it. Even the talking one joined them. A few children took this as an opportunity to run to the other side of the room.

"Pack Leader, get a grip on them!" Drake shouted.

But it was too late for that. Dekka had joined the battle. All of the coyotes closest to the wall were raised into the air, sending them into a frenzy.

_Levitation is good, too. _Nathaniel added.

Then, startling everyone in the room, Sam joined in. A green blast broke through the wall, killing one of the floating coyotes. Blood fell to the floor. Everyone screamed.

Even Cameron.  
"Down on the floor!" Edilio called from somewhere outside. Everybody listened. "Sam, go!"

Sam blasted even more into the room. Children screamed. Coyotes yelped in pain.

Then, Dekka released the floating mutts. They fell to the ground and took off running. Drake followed them, bellowing out insults.

Cameron followed, tripping as he ran from the building.

"Cameron!" Avery jumped out from the alleyway. "Come, come quickly!"

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Sam and Drake.

Then he heard a gunshot.

"I hope Quinn hit that, that…" Avery trailed off, as if no word was terrible enough for Drake.

"Hey," Dekka reached out for Cameron. She seemed to have come out of nowhere.

"What?" Cameron asked, not knowing what to expect.

"All of the Coates kids with powers are supposed to go to the church. She can come, too, I guess." Without any more of an explanation, Dekka walked away.

"I wonder what that's about," Avery said coldly. She obviously didn't want to participate anymore in the day's shenanigans.

"We should go anyways." Cameron answered. He took her hand and pulled her down the road.

_You better hope this isn't a trap. _Nathaniel growled.

_Well that would be an interesting twist. _Damon said, a smile showing through his words.


	25. Two's A Crowd

**Book One: Day Thirteen, Part Six**

"This is going to be a trap. We're going to show up and get killed. One big massacre." I hoped my words stung Cameron. I hoped they reached Nathaniel, too. But secretly, I just really didn't want to get crushed by another building.

"Where else are we going to go?" he asked, almost daring me to answer.

"Everybody seems to be heading towards the plaza. We should go, too." I crossed my arms.

"How do you know that isn't a trap?" Cameron raised one eyebrow. He was much better at this than Nathaniel.

"Well, why would Caine want to take out kids who aren't a threat to him?" I hoped he went with it.

"Fine, but only to get Nathaniel to shut up about it." Cameron walked a few feet in front of me. I gave him his space. I mean, I didn't want him getting angry at a time like this.

When we arrived at the plaza, it seemed like almost every kid in town was there. Everyone except the kids with powers, of course. Everybody was looking around, expecting to see somebody like Sam step up to give a speech about the day's troubling events.

Then, all of a sudden, people began to push their way to the center of the crowd. Children fell to the ground, crying hysterically as they scratched themselves on the pavement.

What could be happening?

The screams of the children towards the edges of the crowd drowned out any other noise.

"Don't you dare get scared, Cameron!" I yelled as loud as I could. Right now, I really only wanted to have to take care of myself.

"I'm just a little confused at the moment!" Cameron yelled back, his voice completely still.

People were pushing as hard as they could. That's when I first heard it.

The coyotes were back, and something told me that they weren't holding captives this time.

"Get down!" somebody screamed over and over. Not in this crowd, I thought to myself. If I even so much as made myself an inch shorter than I already was, I would be part of the ground in this child stampede.

A new sort of scream rang out. A scream or pure terror. A scream of agony. A coyote had taken someone.

That's when I saw the church crumble. The doors and windows flew inward, the front of the church rocked back and forth, about to fall.

Gunshots now. Coyotes yelped. People screamed. A kid next to me crumpled to the ground, blood flowing onto the pavement around him. At that moment everything froze.

I saw Edilio scream at the others with guns to stop shooting.

I saw the church begin to collapse.

I saw Caine, face bloody, turning to face Sam.

I saw Brianna attack Caine with a hammer.

I saw Sam run into the Church.

And finally, I saw the church fall. Fall with everyone in it.

I turned to look for Cameron. I couldn't see him anywhere. I looked for Parker, Damon, and even Nathaniel. They were all nowhere to be found.

That's when I felt a sharp pain in the back of my knee. Someone had kicked me. I was down on the ground before I even had a chance to brace myself. Darkness flooded my vision.

Damn it, not again.


	26. No More Thanksgiving Day Parade

**Book One: Thanksgiving Day**

I awoke in my bed. The sheets were dirty, as if I had just been tossed in without any further care. I got up and made my way across the room. I staggered as I reached for the door. How long had I been out?

As I walked into the kitchen, I noticed Cameron turning into Nathaniel. He had the biggest smile on his face. That and a long, thin cut.

"Oh, my god. What happened to you?" I gasped as I saw it.

"What happened to me? You're the one who's been out cold for days." He chuckled darkly.

"I mean it. What happened?" I walked - more like marched - towards him.

"I got attacked by a coyote. My arm got torn up pretty badly and I got this nasty cut on my face. I only let Lana heal my arm because my face wasn't that bad, and there were worse injuries she needed to take care of. The cut seems to stay with each person. Weird." He turned back to what he was doing.

"What day is it today?" I asked casually, not wanting to make Nathaniel talk more about his injuries. However, his reaction was terrible.

"Thanksgiving Day." He growled under his breath.

Fear flooded me. It was Nathaniel's birthday. He was going to leave me.

"And we don't even get to see the parade!" I inserted sarcastically, but my voice gave away my fear.

"Yeah, and I heard they were going to have some really good bands this year." He turned to face me again, a genuine smile on his face.

"How can you be so happy?" My question slipped out.

"Well, for the past few days, I've thought you were in a coma or something. It's nice to see you before…" His voice trailed off.

For the next few minutes, we just stood next to each other. That's all we seemed to need.

"I was born at 11:11. My mother liked telling me whenever I would make a wish. She would say I was 'her little wish come true.' Too bad her little wish ended up being her big nightmare." Again he trailed off before he could talk anymore. It was about 10:30. We didn't have a lot of time.


	27. Happy Birthday

**Book One: Thanksgiving Day, Part Two**

Together, Avery and Nathaniel walked to the town Plaza.

_We'll stay, we'll stay, we'll stay. _Cameron kept whispering to himself.

_No, we won't, _Damon replied coldly, _despite what you tell yourself and others, you weren't first and you know it._

_ And how do you know? _Cameron snapped back.

_Because your parents called you "Nathaniel," your birth certificate says "Nathaniel," for years, people have addressed you as "Nathaniel," and, guess what? You are Nathaniel! _With each word, Nathaniel could feel Damon driving an invisible stake into Cameron's thoughts. They all knew it was true, but for some reason, Cameron never really wanted it to be.

"How much longer do you have, Nathaniel?" Avery asked. Nathaniel felt a pang of sadness and longing, but not enough to change.

He looked at the watch he had stolen from the coffee table in their new living room. 11:09.

"A few more minutes," he lied through his teeth.

"Good." She said, snuggling up to Nathaniel. He let out a sigh.

_Liar, liar, pants on fire. _Damon sang, elated.

11:10. He had mere seconds. He would be gone before he knew it. In one swift motion, he shifted his arm, turning Avery to face him.

"Goodbye," he breathed. He watched as panic spread across her wonderful face. She leaned in to kiss him, but it was too late.

Everything went black and white. Where Avery had been standing, his father stood firm. He had on his jet-black suit with his favorite mustard yellow tie.

"Hello, son." A smile took over his long, lean face. He held out his arms, as if to hug Nathaniel, but he did not move forward.

"Hello, father." Nathaniel stayed cool. He didn't know what to do. He didn't know what was happening.

"It's time for you to come home, now. Your mother and I had never intended for something like this to happen. We want you home with us now." He put one arm down but kept the other outstretched. Every part of Nathaniel wanted to go with him.

Every part except that that remembered Avery.

"No," Nathaniel said quietly.

"What did you just say?" his father looked taken aback.

"No. I won't go with you. You and Mom kicked me out. You sent me to live with spoiled children who belong behind bars. You betrayed me, and I will not follow you." Nathaniel crossed his arms as he had seen Cameron do countless times before. It seemed to work.

"But you will have nothing here!" He was shouting now, his voice shook Nathaniel. "At home you have wealth, happiness, a chance at a normal life! What do you have here? A misfit girl who won't even tell you that she has been living by herself for the past two years!"

His father's words stung. Could it be true? Would Avery have kept something that big from him? He shook it off, holding his ground.

"I've been living on my own for the past month, ever since you sent me to Coates!" Nathaniel matched his father's tone. He had never stood up to him like this before.

"Yes and we're sorry for that. We made a mistake. Now come, son. Come away from this place." He extended his arm further, urging Nathaniel to follow.

"No. I'll never follow you." Nathaniel turned to walk away, but something prevented him from moving.

Slowly, his father fell away. A monster replaced him, its teeth pointed more than any other creature.

"I'll have you yet," the monster erupted in fury and disappeared.

The color flooded back.

"Not yet." Avery replied as she leaned in the rest of the way.


	28. End: Message From Author

**Ok, so here's how it's going down: I was very unhappy with how this story was going. It was becoming too long and the plot sucked. So, instead of making it about all of the books, I made it just the first book, meaning I removed the flashbacks, too.**

**I'm really sorry if you liked it or you're disappointed that I removed so many chapters, but I was no longer proud with what I was posting. I'd rather people see the best writing. This is just my first fanfiction of (hopefully) many. **

**If you would like to stay in touch, my tumblr is "brontebb" or you can just message me here.**

**Once the book series ends, I will add an epilogue. **

**Love you :) **

**-Brontë **


End file.
